Grand Bahama Island lies just 56 miles off West Palm Beach in Florida, USA, and is easily accesible by direct flights from most major Eastern hub airports in the US, as well as Canada, and even Italy and other parts of Europe! The island is home to only 40,000 locals, so never feels overcrowded, there is always a chance to put the first footprint on a beach in the morning; despite this, the island also offers lively nightlife around the Port Lucaya marketplace, including casinos if you have any spare money after all the diving that's on offer! Visibilty is almost always excellent, sea conditions are fantastic from approximately May to November, during the winter months the chances of it being too rough to safely get the boats in and out of harbour increases, athough you can still expect good diving conditions. Grand Bahama is fringed by 3 reefs, one at 20 ft/6m and less which is ideal for snorkelling and first time divers, or for those who enjoy long bottom times and millions of fish. A medium reef of mainly scattered coral heads in the 35 ft/10m to 60 ft/18m which is adorned by several small tugboat wrecks(and is also the site for the famous shark feeding dives), and a deeper, continuous fringing reef of 60 ft/18m to 90ft/27m boasting nice swim throughs and impressive coral profiles. Both Theo's wreck and the wreck of the Seastar II sit on the 'abyssal plain' in between this deeper reef and the drop off into the 6000ft/1800m N.W. Providence channel. All Caribbean underwater life can be seen here, Caribbean reef sharks are a common sighting(almost guaranteed at some sites), Hammerheads,Tiger, Lemon, and Bull sharks occasionally spotted. Large snapper and grouper can be found at several sites as well as schools of grunt, snapper, spadefish, bermuda chub, horseeye jack, and the ever popular creole wrasse and blue chromis. Two of the island's dive shops offer a shark feeding dive, where chain-mail clad feeders hand feed Caribbean reef sharks up to 10ft/3.3m long, sometimes only a bubble away from you. It's a great chance to see these magnificant animals in their natural environment, to realise from their single minded pursuit of the dead fish on offer that they have very little interest in eating humans, and by seeing the number of sharks scarred and gouged by fish hooks how much this vital species needs our protection. A beautiful and unforgettable experience. As if all this wasn't enough, the island also offers excellent cavern diving, available to openwater certified divers as long as they go with a qualified guide. Where else can you move from fresh to salt water several times during one dive, glide between stralagtites and stalagmites, and discover fragments of fossilised coral reef, all while surrounded by the most incredibly crystal clear water, and within site of natural sunlight? There are also 2 cave diving instructors living on the island for those who have the desire and dedication to safely explore deeper into the miles of underwater cave the island offers. If it tickles your fancy, feel free to sign up for the dolphin dive where captive dolphins follow your boat out into the ocean, and pose for photos with each member of the group before returning to the safety of captivity for a hearty fish supper. May I suggest contacting your dive centre of choice directly by e-mail, as they often have access to special hotel rates, and can organise free transportation to and from your hotel. Ben Cook

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